5 Quick Takes

1. The Inevitable
 I got up this morning, late - as per the usual, and stumbled down stairs to start my coffee intravenous. Something caught my eye on the way to the Keurig....

That's right, the darn swimming pools are about to open in 2 weekends and that means that I will need to be in a bathing suit almost daily.
Son of a..........
So I decided to rekindle my friendship with Nahesi Crawford and his band of cohorts. You don't know Nahesi? Well he is the personal trainer on the X-Factor ST workout DVDs.  It is a knockoff of P90x and Grant and I did the whole series last year and got in pretty good shape.  Since then my workout routine has consisted of walking up and down our stairs and walking out to get the mail. This isn't going to be pretty.

2.  Shorts Season

I hit the Talbot's annual sale in Springfield and it was a bonanza!! I got the above featured shorts for $10 (10 + Bucks!!) in a faded tomato color. They are a petite size (which I am) and they fit like they were made for me. Now to keep from ruining them by wearing them every day......... hmmmmm.

3.  Homeschool

School is almost out and my thinker is thinkin' about all the ways that I can improve our experience next year.  One idea I have been kicking around is the 6 week on/2 week off schedule.  Read: No real summer break. I am super torn by this idea - but if I saw it for the opportunity to travel some (in the off-season. Read: Better rates) and get some projects done around the house - not to mention getting papers graded and submitted on time... worth it? I am a self-avowed summer junkie and can't quite seem to wrap my mind around not having 2 1/2 months of pure freedom.  But if you read this blog:

Design Mom

and see how they use the French schedule to support their travel, you might arrive at the same crossroads I have.  What do you think? Is the American system superior or do the French have it right?

Telephone booth in Oslo, Norway from http://www.designmom.com

4. Chickens.

Where do I start? I am going to write down my experience with raising hatchlings so that if you want to do it, you don't have to start from the beginning as I have. Basically, without the knowledge of the women at Southern States Farm Supply, I'd have drown by now. We have 7 big, burly, robust chickens in our basement just a-waiting to get out and do their chicken thang. They eat bugs like they are truffles and they fertilize the garden. Plus, (PLUS!) in a couple of weeks we'll have eggs. Brown eggs, to boot. Because nothing is more quaint than brown eggs, right?

ablestock.com/thinkstock

Plus, I am coveting this hen house. 

With the veggies on the top? Am I right?

5. The Great Gatsby

I liked it very much. Very much.

Let me tell you what I liked:

The hair.

The short bobbed hair with the finger waved details was over the top. It was gorgeous and perfect and the hair team deserve their very own Academy Award.

The Parties.

Courtesy of Warner Bros.

Because in the words of the unsinkable Liz Lemon, "I want to go to there."

The Carey Mulligan.

She is a fashion idol of mine and I am fairly certain that there was no singular shot where she didn't look flawless.

It was eye candy from beginning to end. I don't know if it lived up to the book or if it did Fitzgerald justice or any of that gobbledygook.  It was beautiful and I liked it. The end.

I linked it up at www.camppatton.com.  I just discovered her via www.moxiewife.com and I think I love her very much.

Enjoy

Have you seen this? I literally cheered upon it's conclusion right here in my little schoolroom.  I would classify it as a hybrid of ballet and break dancing - but whatever it really is?  I am a fan.

Five Favorites - Volume I

I am a link-up novice - but when the lovely Moxie Wife, Hallie Lord, put a link up on her sweet blog - I decided to join in the fun. Here are a list of the five things I am loving right now:

1. In the Fiction Category:

Where'd You Go, Bernadette, by Maria Semple.

This is a quick and quirky read. I was hooked from the very first page. I got it on Grant's Kindle for some exorbitant price (should Kindle books be that expensive, or am I just being a cheap-o?) and am thinking about buying a hard copy just to have around. 

2. In the Vegan Baking category:

Link to Prudent Baby

Individual coffee cakes from Prudent Baby.  These are so simple and so delicious and they can be so easily adapted to fit your dietary needs. Substitute coconut oil for the butter and leave out the egg and you have a warm, delicious allergen-free treat.  Well, except if you're allergic to wheat. Or coconut oil. Or sugar. Then go buy yourself some chocolate and ignore this category.

3. In the I'm-Going-To-Wear-It-To-Naples Category:

Jubilant in Jade Dress (clipped to polyvore.com)

This little honey of a dress from Mod Cloth. You see, Grant and I are going on vacation to Naples, FL alone and I am building my fantasy wardrobe for our trip. I think this dress falls into the Will-Be-Reality version of my fantasy wardrobe because I love it so much. My only fear is sweat rings. I get sweat rings. Don't judge me.

4. In the Food-I've-Made-That-Actually-Turned-Out-Better-Than-Expected Category:

Pizza Margherita.

Guys, it is so good. Here's the skinny:
1. Make the dough in the bread machine with wheat with a higher protein content than AP. (I used bread flour....)
2. San Marzanos and a bit of sea salt make a fresh, tomatoey sauce. I don't like the taste of anything even resembling tomato paste - so this sauce is clutch.
3. Fresh mozzarella and fresh basil and a glass of red. (The red is for drinking - not the pizza.)
4. Heat your oven to about 550 degrees.
5. Invert a cookie sheet so you have a flat surface for cooking and heat it up with the oven.
6. Assemble the pizza on the raw dough and cook on a oiled piece of tin foil directly on top of the cookie sheet.

Enjoy.

I have a theory, though. It won't taste like a vacation in Italia, no matter how fresh your mozzarella, no matter how fragrant your basil. Because here's the truth: You aren't in Italia. You are in your own kitchen with your own mess to clean and your own children who need a bath and your own laundry to fold. And if - just if - you were in Italia eating a piece of piping hot cardboard? It would probably taste better than this divine pizza that I have provided for you above. Sorry. But that is just the truth.

5. In the Music Category:

You can eat your pizza, in your house, with your kids and your mess and listen to this song. All of this will probably come a very close second to that cardboard in Italy.

If you want to see more of these link-ups, please visit my girl Hallie at Moxie Wife. You'll thank yourself.